Hero Story

During the pandemic, Erica Owens and her son Padraig did everything possible to help others with their organization Frugal On The Fly. This support included: weekly food distribution, toiletry + nonperishable drives for homeless women and families, clothing and furniture donations, fundraising for women veterans, youth and seniors, popup Little Free Libraries, coat/blanket/sock drives, diaper drive, keeping voters warm at the polls, youth and community events, and providing 250 backpacks stuffed with school supplies + PPE to Detroit students returning to school.

In the height of the pandemic when many were home Erica and her son passed out over 1,000,000 pounds of fresh, nutritious food and tended to the needs of families and the homeless struggling due to Covid-19. She raised and donated over 2,000 toiletries, plus thousands of non-persishables during a MLK Day of Service, benefiting our shelter to support families who have become homeless due to Covid-19. She later spearheaded a campaign to re-purpose shelter space to create a safe and healthy place for homeless children to play and learn.

Erica truly works from her heart and has been available to so many wonderful organizations during the pandemic.